Aranji

Aranji is a mysterious goddess of Conquest, Fire, and Light whom appeared in Mahnuj at the beginning of the Second Era. It is said she was sent by the Council of High Gods in Aalguden heretofore unknown to all but the most learned of ancient divinity scholars on Kalgranoon. Aranji is believed to have been sent as an observatory agent after the relative success of the First Era of Mahnuj when Lilyath was given the go-ahead to proceed with her creation, showing it to be worthy of existence. She watched silently for the entirety of the Second Era, watching and waiting for something to go wrong, in which case she would return to Aalguden and issue her report to the Council of High Gods for the termination of Mahnuj.

Over the course of her observation, Aranji kept herself hidden within the Sun where she was most comfortable and avoiding the detection of the other gods. She inadvertently fostered the creation of sun-cults in her name upon Kalgranoon throughout the Second Era.

When the war between Karkien and Mahnuj began, Aranji was tempted to intervene on the side of Lilyath and the Travelers, but was forbidden to by her vow of secrecy. She watched the events of The Fall from afar, mourning the death of Lilyath by sending a brilliant display of golden Aurora to Kalgranoon, which the Three Travelers were suspicious of, but eventually attributed it to the sudden burst of Mana caused by The Fall, as it had caused many other mysterious side-effects.

At the end of the Second Age, when the gods were sealed from Mahnuj, Aranji spent a very long time deciding what to do. She had grown attached to Kalgranoon for the many years that she had watched from afar and grew to love the burgeoning races. Aranji thought it was truly tragic that Mahnuj had become and "Orphaned Realm." Part of her was also greedy. She had spent thousands of years watching over a realm, but she had never been granted the right to make her own. Aranji proceeded to break her vows to the High Council of Aalguden and little by little began to plant the seeds of belief in the peoples of Kalgranoon. Soon enough, she had a band of followers spreading across the land in wars of conquest. She granted some among them the use of her magic, that of Fire and Light, to further spread her message.

In the beginning, Aranji wanted only for the safekeeping of Mahnuj in the absence of their original gods, but over time her Greed and Arrogance overcame her good will. She now believes that she is the best hope of the races of Kalgranoon, as do her band of fervent and sometimes even extremist followers who consider themselves crusaders enacting the will of the "Holy Lady of Light".